The present invention relates generally to movement of fluid, such as a high gas-to-liquid ratio fluid, and particularly to the use of multiple pumps, in which at least one pump pressurizes the fluid and delivers the pressurized fluid to a production pump.
Certain types of pumps, such as centrifugal pumps, can lose efficiency or even be damaged when pumping multi-phase fluids having a relatively high gas content. For example, such pumps often are used in the production of subterranean fluids, such as oil, where the fluid can exist in a multi-phase form within the reservoir. In one type of application, a wellbore is drilled into the reservoir of desired fluid, and a pumping system is deployed in the wellbore to raise the desired fluid. The pumping system may comprise an electric submersible pumping system that utilizes a submersible motor to power a production pump, such as a centrifugal pump. When the produced fluid is a multi-phase fluid comprising oil and gas, performance of the pumping system can be substantially limited.
The present invention relates generally to a technique for moving fluids having a relatively high gas-to-liquid ratio, such as certain fluids produced from subterranean reservoirs. The technique can be utilized with, for example, an electric submersible pumping system used within a wellbore for the production of oil. Of course, the technique may have applications in other environments and with other types of fluid.
In this technique, a compressor pump is employed to compress the vapor phase in a multi-phase fluid. This pressurized fluid is then delivered to a production pump that moves the fluid to a desired location. By delivering fluid to the production pump with reduced or eliminated vapor phase, the efficiency and longevity of various types of production pumps can be improved.